1. Field of the Invention
It is common in connection with people who are severely incontinent, to apply a male urinal catheter consisting of a sheath of flexible material placed over the penis and connected to a urine receptacle with a tube or other flexible conduit. The urine receptacle may be worn on the body or near the body. The problem with such devices is to make them liquid tight and at the same time comfortable to the wearer, since they must be worn for long periods of time. One initial approach to the problem was to use a tape wound around the outside of a sheath designed like a condom. This tended, however, to produce constrictions and discomfort.
In the Hauser U.S. Pat. No. 4,187,851, a double faced adhesive tape of rather soft deformable material is wound around the penis before the condom-like sheath is applied. This acts as a cushion so that the sheath does not constrict the penis. At the same time, it aids in forming a liquid-tight seal. This involves the use of several members. In the first place, it is necessary to have the double faced adhesive tape and to remove protective strips from the adhesive surfaces before application. The tape is then spirally rolled onto the penis. After that the sheath is unrolled onto the tape and is pressed firmly against the tape to form a liquid tight seal. While the arrangement of the Hauser patent results in a liquid tight, relatively comfortable condom catheter, it has the drawback that considerable preparation is required in applying the condom catheter to the penis. Where a nurse or companion is applying this to a person, the time required and the ease of application is important. Also, if self-applied it is cumbersome to those with impaired dexterity.
In the Conway et al U.S. Pat. No. 4,475,910, the need for an adhesive tape underneath the sheath is eliminated. The sheath is provided with an adhesive on the inner surface. There is an adhesive release layer on the outer surface of the sheath so that when the sheath is in a rolled up condition, the turns of the roll do not adhere to each other. When the sheath is unrolled, the adhesive on the inner surface of the sheath causes the sheath to adhere firmly to the penis. This eliminates the need for a separate tape and greatly reduces the time and dexterity required to apply the condom catheter to the penis.
All of the arrangements of the prior art discussed above require a relatively long condom sheath which is initially rolled up and is then unrolled onto the penis. The unrolling of the sheath onto the penis has to be done carefully and again takes substantial time and dexterity. Moreover, any condom-type of sheath which covers much of the penile shaft leads to an increased risk of skin irritation and infection.